Heisenberg
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Cititour.com Review
Madness and mania seem to suit Mary-Louise Parker. Her finest performances, Catherine in “Proof,” Harper in “Angels in America,” and Nancy in “Weeds,” have all been ladies who have some trouble handling reality. That description would seem to fit her latest alter ego, Georgie Burns, in “Heisenberg,” Simon Stephens’ often enchanting, occasionally frustrating, and ultimately poignant two-hander now at MTC’s Samuel Friedman Theater. (The play debuted stateside with Parker and co-star Denis Arndt in the summer of 2015 at the far more intimate MTC-Stage II at City Center).
For a large part of the 80-minute play, we can’t be sure if Georgie is merely eccentric or deeply bipolar. After all, we first see her just after she has randomly kissed total stranger Alex Priest (Denis Arndt), a lonely septuagenarian, at a London train station. But as the play unfolds, we are tempted to change our minds this way and that about why Georgie says what he says and does and what she does, until Stephens reveals the truth about Georgie’s painful existence and her probable motive for seducing Alex.
While Stephens has some tricks up his proverbial sleeve, what isn’t surprising, at least to the audience, is how the unpredictable 40something, brashly American Georgie awakens something in Alex, a lifelong bachelor and now less-than-successful butcher, eventually forcing him to reconsider how –or even if -- he’s been living. Still, the question dangles in the air almost to the last second whether this former lone wolf will hook up with Georgie permanently or abandon her.
Parker sinks her teeth into Georgie, a woman with surprising inner strength mixed with a distinct vulnerability that catches you off guard. And while she pulls off the rather dazzling feat of making us root for Georgie -- rather than making her completely insufferable -- Parker seems to be overplaying her character’s wackiness just a little, screaming her lines to the back of the mezzanine and making gestures so broad they radiate out onto West 47th Street. Still, it’s almost impossible to imagine any other actress being as effective in the role.
Intriguingly, Arndt (a veteran of almost every regional theater in the U.S.) doesn’t appear to have heightened his work from last year, which remains beautifully subtle. He gives Alex gruffness and tenderness in equal measure, and paints an indelible portrait of a man brought back to life – and who remembers how to give as good as he gets.
Director Mark Brokaw and scenic designer Mark Wendland have created a small central playing area on stage with the part of the audience seated behind them on the stage (the first row leaves those spectators practically on top of the actors) and the rest in the Friedman’s normal seats. Two benches and chairs make up the only set pieces, while Michael Krass has given each actor one casual outfit to wear throughout the whole play. It’s about as anti-spectacle as Broadway gets. And it doesn’t matter one bit!
And just in case you’re wondering (and you probably are) the title has to do with the Heisenberg Principle, which has something to do with uncertainty. I may not know much about physics, but I am certain that these actors’ sterling work is not to be missed.
By Brian Scott Lipton
Visit the Site
http://heisenbergbroadway.com
Cast
Denis Arndt, Mary-Louise Parker
Open/Close Dates
Opening 10/13/2016
Closing 12/11/2016
Preview Open/ Preview Close Dates
Preview Opening 9/20/2016
Closing Open-ended
Box Office
212-239-6200
Theatre Info
Samuel J. Friedman Theatre
261 West 47th Street
New York, NY 10036
Map
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